Professor, fangirl, Dionysian, lycanthropy specialist

Author: Moonyprof

Misti-Con is one of the best Harry Potter cons out there. I would say “the best,” but if I did, it would seem too self-aggrandizing, as I’m the Academic Programming Chair or Coordinator or something. I help pick out fellow eggheads, is what I’m trying to say. Misti is unique. It is small, at about 500 people, which prevents it from being overwhelming for introverts. It is immersive: the Margate Hotel in Laconia N.H. is transformed to a place in J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world down to every detail, and the hotel becomes a Muggle-free zone. It’s also a nice mix of people. Academics, K-12 teachers, fanworkers, fans, and writers mix without a sense of hierarchy, and reasonably so, as most of us combine several identities in one person.

I realized that I had actually missed my deadline, and I said I would stick to my weekly posts, so a bit of backstory will do.

As I read through recent werewolf scholarly work, I noticed that there was a common theme, especially among female scholars. They all identified an “aha!” moment that fascinated them. Chantal Bourgault de Coudray talks about her fear and attraction to the French horns in “Peter and the Wolf.” A few, like Renee Ward, have been especially drawn towards Remus Lupin in Harry Potter, and the character’s intersection with werewolf lore on multiple levels. That is my own origin story, which I will save for a later date. But before that, I went through a Universal Pictures phase, long ago, when I was a teenager.

I have promised myself to put up a new blog post every Sunday, or at least in time for Monday. I will get into some more complex analyses in future posts, but I thought I would start with a recent and somewhat lighter take on lycanthropy.

Like any good lycanthropy scholar, I have a dual identity. I am Dr. Melissa D. Aaron, mild mannered professor at Cal Poly Pomona, where I teach Early Modern Drama, and Moonyprof, (my Harry Potter fandom name), a specialist in werewolves in Harry Potter and pop culture, who some might say is a bit too close to her subject. I’m not THE werewolf specialist in Harry Potter. There are many excellent critics on the subject, and I hope to refer to or link to them here. I think, however, that it’s not exaggerating to describe myself as A Harry Potter werewolf specialist.

This blog has a specific purpose: to put all my Harry Potter, werewolf, and related writings and material in one place. You’ll see postings on werewolves, Harry Potter, and my work, including Potter related events I’m involved with or know about, upcoming conferences, or places I’ll be. I’ll be updating regularly, once a week. There’s always something to say about werewolves and/or Harry Potter, and I will be saying some of it in public instead of limiting it to conference presentations.